Specific Books The Hive Detectives: Chronicle of a Honey Bee Catastrophe
By Loree Griffin Burns. Illus. by Ellen Harasimowicz. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
After beekeepers discover the strange abandonment of hundreds of hives, scientists seek to understand this catastrophic phenomenon.
Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World’s Strangest Parrot – This book documents the successes and failures of a rescue effort in New Zealand dedicated to saving a species of flightless parrots numbering fewer than 100. Sibert Medal
Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam and the Science of Ocean Motion
Aided by an army of beachcombers, oceanographer Dr. Curtis Ebbesmeyer tracks trash in the name of science. From sneakers to hockey gloves, Curt monitors the watery fate of human-made cargo that has spilled into the ocean. The information he collects is much more than casual news; it is important scientific data. And with careful analysis, Curt, along with a community of scientists, friends, and beachcombers alike, is using his data to understand and protect our ocean.
As suggested by the great Catherine Blair
I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness to the Blind Side and Beyond.
"How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous"
"Deadly Perils and How to Avoid Them"
the Wicked History biography series (especially Hitler)
"They Called Themselves the KKK";
"Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty"
"Warriors: Morituri Te Salutamus"
Ripley's "Incredibly Strange!" by Geoff Tibballs.
Bootleg by Karen Blumenthal
Ditto Jeff Belanger's "What It's Like to Climb Mount Everest, Blast Off Into Space...""
Some of the more interesting nonfiction books I have ordered/will be ordering for middle schoolers, in addition to everything on Catherine's list... (from Liz Koehler):
The Dark Game: True Spy Stories by Paul B. Janeczko
Written in Bone: Buried Lives of Jamestown and Colonial Maryland by Sally M. Walker
Skywalkers: Mohawk Ironworkers Build the City by David Weitzman
On my Journey Now: Looking at African American History through the Spirituals by Nikki Giovanni
Not Without Hope by Nick Schuyler
Immersed in Verse: an informative, slightly irreverent & totally tremendous guide to living the poet's life
King George, what was his problem?: Everything your schoolbooks didn't tell you about the American Revolution by Steve Sheinkin
Chinese Cinderella: The true story of an unwanted daughter by Adeline Yen Mah
Charles and Emma: the Darwins' Leap of Faith
Phineas Gage: A Gruesome but True Story about Brain Science by John Fleischman
Almost Astronauts: 13 Women who Dared to Dream by Tanya Lee Stone
Please Read (if at all possible): The Girl Project by Kate Engelbrecht
Marching for Freedom: March Together, Children, and Don't You Grow Weary by Elizabeth Partridge
Lucy long ago: Uncovering the mystery of where we came from by Catherine Thimmesh
Unlikely friendships: 47 remarkable stories from the Animal Kingdom by Jennifer S. Holland
It's Perfectly Normal: a book about changing bodies, growing up, sex, and sexual health by Robie H. Harris
The Babysitter's Survival Guide: fun games, cool crafts, and how to be the best babysitter in town by Jill D. Chasse
Throw like a girl: how to dream big and believe in yourself by Jennie Finch
Soul Surfer by Bethany Hamilton (middle school girls at my FE school and my current school have asked after this one)
Spilling Ink: a Young Writer's Handbook by Anne Mazer
Great Medieval Projects You Can Build Yourself by Kris Bordessa
Truce: the Day the Soldiers Stopped Fighting by Jim Murphy
Lincoln Shot: a President's Life Remembered by Barry Denenberg
Traveling the Freedom Road: from Slavery & the civil war through Reconstruction by Linda Barrett Osborne
Blizzard: the Storm that Changed America by Jim Murphy
Years of Dust: the Story of the Dust Bowl by Albert Marrin
Lists & Awards
ALSC Notable Books for Middle Grades List - Actually includes suggestions for alla ges
IRA Children's and Young Adult's Book Awards - These are handed out for both fiction and non-fiction, so you have to pick through a bit.
Robert F. Seibert Book Medal for Informational Books
YALSA Award for Excellence in Non-fiction for Young Adults
Specific Books
The Hive Detectives: Chronicle of a Honey Bee Catastrophe
By Loree Griffin Burns. Illus. by Ellen Harasimowicz. Houghton Mifflin Books for Children/Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
After beekeepers discover the strange abandonment of hundreds of hives, scientists seek to understand this catastrophic phenomenon.
Kakapo Rescue: Saving the World’s Strangest Parrot – This book documents the successes and failures of a rescue effort in New Zealand dedicated to saving a species of flightless parrots numbering fewer than 100. Sibert Medal
Tracking Trash: Flotsam, Jetsam and the Science of Ocean Motion
Aided by an army of beachcombers, oceanographer Dr. Curtis Ebbesmeyer tracks trash in the name of science. From sneakers to hockey gloves, Curt monitors the watery fate of human-made cargo that has spilled into the ocean. The information he collects is much more than casual news; it is important scientific data. And with careful analysis, Curt, along with a community of scientists, friends, and beachcombers alike, is using his data to understand and protect our ocean.
As suggested by the great Catherine Blair
I Beat the Odds: From Homelessness to the Blind Side and Beyond.
"How They Croaked: The Awful Ends of the Awfully Famous"
"Deadly Perils and How to Avoid Them"
the Wicked History biography series (especially Hitler)
"They Called Themselves the KKK";
"Yummy: The Last Days of a Southside Shorty"
"Warriors: Morituri Te Salutamus"
Ripley's "Incredibly Strange!" by Geoff Tibballs.
Bootleg by Karen Blumenthal
Ditto Jeff Belanger's "What It's Like to Climb Mount Everest, Blast Off Into Space...""
Some of the more interesting nonfiction books I have ordered/will be ordering for middle schoolers, in addition to everything on Catherine's list... (from Liz Koehler):